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Denver is seeing mail volumes that rival holiday season because of coronavirus

USPS is hiring mail carriers
Posted at 3:26 PM, Apr 09, 2020
and last updated 2020-04-10 03:47:25-04

DENVER -- Mail carriers are delivering as many packages as they normally do during the holiday season, and as the post office is working to keep up with demand, they're taking steps to protect employees.

"So we’ve had to come up with different ways of how to keep our clerks from being [together] in one point at a time so we’ve started staggered start times for our carriers, for our clerks," said Lora McLucas, Acting Denver Postmaster.

McLucas said the number of packages being delivered is up 40% in the Denver area. She believes more people are ordering items online in order to avoid leaving their homes.

"It’s about like peak, which is what we refer to the holiday season," said McLucas. "It’s pretty comparable to Christmastime."

The United States Postal Service is currently hiring in an effort to keep up with the increased demand. One-hundred-twenty-five city mail carriers are needed in Denver.

"This isn’t just a job, this is actually more of a career, we start about $17 to $23 an hour with the postal service, it’s a great position and it’s a career," said McLucas.

McLucas said post office employees are being provided with gloves, face masks and hand sanitizer. When she had a difficult time finding sanitizer, she approached Mad Rabbit Distillery in Westminster and they partnered with the post office to fulfill a large order.

USPS is also taking steps to keep customers safe, plexiglass dividers have been installed at customer service desks and taped markers on the floor are in place to encourage social distancing. Post office branches will remain open during regular business hours.